- Record-smashing £895million was expected to be spent online on Christmas Day – up 11 per cent on last year
- Retailers are bracing for a flurry of shoppers to take advantage of huge deals in the Boxing Day sales
- Store spending set to pass £105million as 1.5million shoppers spend at record number of convenience stores
- Seventeen million splashed out on 'Super Saturday' – capping Britain's busiest ever week before Christmas
- However, some retailers are feeling the strain as Boots website crashes due to sheet numbers of shoppers
By Sophie Inge and Bridie Pearson-jones For Mailonline
Published: 11:47 EST, 25 December 2017 | Updated: 14:56 EST, 25 December 2017
Eager shoppers splashed out a record £1bn on Christmas day in an online shopping splurge as retailers braced for a further spending flurry on Boxing Day.
Shoppers across the country hit the high street for Christmas Eve's 'Super Saturday' in a frenzy of panic buying but that did not stop another major outlay today as sales smashed the billion pound barrier for the first time.
And the chance of snagging a huge bargain on Boxing Day is expected to see £1million spent a minute amid 88 per cent discounts.
A record £895million is expected to be spent online – up 11 per cent on last year – as sales started yesterday or today online, according to a Centre for Retail Research study for VoucherCodes, based on interviews with 80 major UK retailers and 1,000 shoppers.
However, some websites are struggling with the numbers of bargain shoppers, with shoppers complaining about Boots website crashing.
Frustrated shoppers took to social media to air their grievances with the pharmaceutical chain.
One tweeted: 'I've waited over 40 minutes to get on your website.'
Another said: 'Mother in law has just waited 45 minutes to get onto boots website for it only to say 'we're really busy now come back later'. Disgusting! Waited all that time and can't get on!'
Others tweeted screenshots of their computers showing the waiting time to get on the site.
Speaking to the MailOnline, a spokesperson from Boots said they had 'unprecedented demand to the site'.
They added: 'Due to a technical issue with the sale we are intermittently closing the site for short periods of time while we resolve this. We’re sorry for any inconvenience this is causing our customers, and our stores will be open tomorrow with the same great deals.'
Frustrated shoppers took to social media to show their anger at the store
Some shoppers tweeted screenshots similar to those that are used by tickets venders at rock concerts showing the waiting time
Some tweeted GIFs and memes from popular TV shows to show their frustration at the pharmacy
Shoppers tweeted their frustration at the lack of stock and long waiting times on the Boots website
The chance of snagging a huge bargain on Boxing Day is expected to see £1million spent a minute amid 88 per cent discounts
Signs for Boxing Day sales were already going up across the country on Christmas Eve. Pictured: Shoppers search for a bargain outside a Next Store in central London
Boxing Day is due even bigger bargains as sales start early online today and from 6am Tuesday in stores
Online sales started with AO.com at 12noon Christmas Eve, with Next joining from 3pm, John Lewis and M&S from 5pm and Debenhams also due to start. Argos' online sale was starting at 6am on Christmas Day
Seventeen million shoppers splashed out on 'Super Saturday' on Saturday – capping Britain's £7billion busiest ever week before Christmas as price cuts hit 88 per cent. Pictured: Boxing Day sale signs in One New Chance in central London on Christmas Eve
Last minute shoppers flock to London's West End yesterday in search of 11th-hour gifts for friends and family
Customer queues in some shops in the West End which stayed open until late last night
Left: Crowds mill around Oxford Circus underground station as night descended on the capital. Right: Hundreds of customers created queue of over 50 yards in each direction on Regent Street as they wait for Hamley's Toy Store to open yesterday
Shoppers fuelled by caffeine grab last minute bargains in Central London last night
Crowds grow in London's west end on Christmas Eve as last minute shoppers hunt for gifts
Seventeen million shoppers splashed out on 'Super Saturday' yesterday – capping Britain's £7billion busiest ever week before Christmas as price cuts hit 88 per cent
It works out at £932,000-a-minute over the 16 hours most are awake on Christmas Day.
Store spending today is set to pass £105million as 1.5million shoppers spend at a record number of convenience stores and garages also opening up.
Christmas Day online spending peaked at 10am as cash gifts and vouchers were opened and another spike is expected at 6pm before big evening TV shows, experts say.
Consumer electronics will be popular purchases while Amazon expects movies and music downloads to be big sellers.
Professor Joshua Bamfield, director of the Centre for Retail Research, said: 'It looks like the first ever £1billion Christmas Day. The day is getting stronger every year for online spending.
'Shoppers want the bargains retailers make available when post-Christmas sales start early online.'
Post-Christmas sales started online on Christmas Eve.
Online sales started with AO.com at 12noon Christmas Eve, with Next joining from 3pm, John Lewis and M&S from 5pm and Debenhams also due to start. Argos' online sale was starting at 6am on Christmas Day.
Seventeen million shoppers splashed out on 'Super Saturday' on Saturday – capping Britain's £7billion busiest ever week before Christmas as price cuts hit 88 per cent.
And Boxing Day is due even bigger bargains as sales start early online today and from 6am Tuesday in stores.
Last minute Christmas shoppers throng the city centre, in Leeds, West Yorkshire
Last minute Christmas shoppers throng the city centre, in Leeds, West Yorkshire
Shoppers get some last minute presents for Christmas in Bristol on Christmas Eve
Shoppers get some last minute presents for Christmas in Bristol on Sunday
Best Christmas bargains
Bourjois Une Skin Matt Foundation was cut 88 per cent from £12.49 to £1.49 by FragranceDirect.co.uk.
A women's Reebok CrossFit Tank Top was cut 84 per cent from to £2.99 by mandmdirect.com
Big chains including Next and Oasis have cut up to 70 per cent off prices, with Top Shop, River Island and Argos at up to 50 per cent off, and some Currys deals at close to half-price.
Saturday had even more shoppers than are due on Boxing Day, with one in three adults shopping yesterday as £1.7billion was spent.
Fourteen million jammed high streets and shopping centres to spend £1.45billion, with 3.4m shopping online, spending an additional £220million.
Bluewater, Kent, was expected to have seen 110,000 shoppers yesterday, with 100,000 at Lakeside, Essex.
St David's, Cardiff, was due 250,000 shoppers, with 220,000 at Birmingham's Bullring, 180,000 at Manchester's Trafford Centre and 90,000 at Bristol's Cabot Circus.
Scottish malls were anticipated to appraoched 100,000 at the Braehead Centre, near Glasgow, 80,000 at Glasgow's Silverburn and 70,000 at Aberdeen's Union Square.
The splurge capped a record £7billion spree for the last shopping week before December 25, the spending data showed, with around £5.5billion spent in stores this week and another £1.5billion online.
The mega spree was due to a late rush after shopper totals were down 10 per cent on last year over the first three weeks of December.
Professor Joshua Bamfield, director of the Centre for Retail Research, said: 'This may well be the busiest ever week before Christmas in terms of shopper numbers, and the biggest spending week before Christmas ever.
'Saturday has the highest ever number of shoppers before Christmas forecast, as it falls right before Christmas Eve.
'There is a trend of spending late. And prices are falling so shoppers can expect bargains.'
Mintel director of retail research Richard Perks added: 'More and more shoppers are leaving it until the last minute.'
Travel disruption
Many of Britain's mainline train routes were partially shut as Network Rail carries out its biggest ever Christmas investment programme.
Great Western Railway urged passengers to complete journeys by Saturday 'at the latest' as London Paddington were closed between Christmas Eve and December 27.
The West Coast main line will be halted between Preston and Lancaster from Christmas Eve to December 27, with buses replacing trains.
Passengers travelling between London and Glasgow during this time are advised to go via Edinburgh, adding around an hour to journeys.
Coach operator National Express is running its largest ever Christmas schedule to meet increased demand from key locations such as Bournemouth, Cardiff, Leeds, Edinburgh, Portsmouth, Bristol, Glasgow and Manchester.
Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) and Transport Salaried Staffs Association (TSSA) were due to stage a series of walkouts on Virgin Trains West Coast, starting on Friday, but they were called off after a deal to end a row over pay.
A busy High Street in Canterbury, Kent, as shoppers purchase last minute presents on Christmas Eve
A busy High Street in Canterbury, Kent, as shoppers purchase last minute presents on Christmas Eve
Shoppers get some last minute presents for Christmas in Bristol on Christmas Eve
People may have been leaving their shopping to the last minute, but traffic was unexpectedly light on the M5 south near Birmingham, as people appear to have made their journeys for the festive holidays
Very light Christmas Eve traffic on the M5 south near Birmingham, West Midlands
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